


Hidden Truths

by Your1destiny



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Deception, Drama, Explicit Language, F/M, Fluff, Hogwarts Era, Original Character(s), Romance, Slow Burn, Undercover, the slowest burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-26
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-17 02:36:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 13,892
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29710353
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Your1destiny/pseuds/Your1destiny
Summary: Draco Malfoy has a secret. Two, in fact. The first, is his older sister, Vega. No one in the world besides his family knows of her. The second, his insatiable interest in a certain bushy-haired member of the Golden Trio. When the Dark Lord orders that Vega ensnare Harry Potter and destroy him from within his own cohort, Draco must decide if he should protect himself or his big sister. Slow burn!
Relationships: Harry Potter/Original Female Character(s), Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy
Kudos: 4





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Customary Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters. I did create the character of Vega Malfoy. Occasionally, when I want a scene to be similar to that of the original plot, I will imitate the scene by re-iterating the dialogue in the books. I will NOT just take it straight from the original pages, unless there is absolutely no way for me to re-iterate. In that case, I will ensure to always make note of what lines are direct copies.

**September 1985, _Malfoy Manor_**

Narcissa Malfoy held her son, Draco, in her arms as her husband spoke at the boy. Not to, at. Lucius Malfoy’s voice continued to grow louder, not expressing any concerns on the topic of discussion, but rather the threats at what would happen to the boy if he did not obey. She could feel Draco shrinking in towards her and shivering like a leaf in his fear. Narcissa cleared her voice, a well-known signal for Lucius to, quite clearly, quit talking. He sent her a glare, but went silent. Narcissa looked down at the boy in her arms, attempting to soothe him with her touch, but still impressing the seriousness of their predicament.

“Draco, darling. Do you understand what your father is trying to tell you?” She asked him in a quiet voice.

Draco looked up at his mum with his big grey eyes. “No, mummy. Why can’t anyone know about Vega?” He reached for the long necklace around her neck and began fiddling with the trinket at the end of it.

Lucius sighed in exasperation, moving from his rigid posture in front of the boy and his mother. He walked across the room to gaze out the window with his hands held behind his back.

“It’s hard for me to explain, dear. But, a girl hasn’t been born to a Malfoy in centuries. The fact that she was born before you means that someone might even try to hurt her, or you. We can’t let that happen. So for now, we must keep her a secret. Alright, my sweet?” Narcissa spoke softly, running her fingers through Draco’s hair.

“Okay, mummy. I won’t tell anyone about Vega. Can I go play with her now though?” Draco looked up through his lashes at her, but not before sending a fearful look towards Lucius once more. 

“Of course, darling. Off you go.” Narciss replied fondly.

She slid Draco off her lap and he raced towards the door excitedly. At seemingly the last moment he came to a sudden halt, and turned towards his father. Lucius had turned his head towards Draco, only raising an eyebrow in response. Draco suddenly took on a rigid posture similar to his father’s.

“Thank you, father.” Draco said seriously, waiting for Lucius’ approval.

Lucius' expression returned to a stoic one, and he gave his son a curt nod. Draco turned and walked to the door, but as soon as he reached the hallway he burst into a run again. Lucius turned back towards the window, and spoke to Narcissa.

“You mustn’t do that, Narcissa. The boy needs to learn authority. Allowing you to undermine mine, teaches him to talk back. We mustn’t have that.”

Narcissa picked up the tea sitting on the table next to her. “Your scare tactics were not working, dear. You don’t have to teach him with fear.” She took a sip of her tea.

“Fear is, without a doubt, the most powerful emotion. It keeps one on edge, and always contemplating the next possibilities. For fear of losing what they cherish most. Fear is what will keep the boy in check.”

Narcissa sighed. The outcome of their current predicament was hanging by a thread around their five year old’s tongue.


	2. Chapter Two

**21 June 1992, _Malfoy Manor_**

“ _The_ _famous_ _Harry Potter._ ” Draco spat. “Can you believe it, Vega? _He_ refused _me_ , a Malfoy!”

Vega and Draco Malfoy were both in their mother’s sitting room, having tea with her. Narcissa sat silently, both amused and exasperated by her son’s antics. Having Draco back for the summer hols was already tiring, and he’d only been home for a day. Vega rolled her eyes at her brother.

“Yes, Draco. I can believe it. But only because this is probably the millionth time you’ve mentioned it since the first letter you sent back in September.” Vega said drily. 

Narcissa observed her children’s actions. Vega had a very straight posture, and sipped at her tea primly. Yes, she definitely had done well with her etiquette and she was the very definition of a Malfoy. Draco, on the other hand, was very expressive when he felt emotions strongly. This was a Black trait, Narcissa told herself, recalling her sisters, volatile Bellatrix and passionate Andromeda. Narcissa knew that Lucius would not be pleased with their son’s mannerisms and reminded herself to take Draco aside before her husband could come across these actions.

Draco sputtered, his attempt to garner sympathy or incense Vega to agree with him was failing spectacularly. “And then the old codger gave them the House Cup! We actually  _ earned _ the blasted thing!” he grumbled, crossed his arms over his chest, and slumped back against the sofa he sat on.

“Draco, there is nothing to be done about it. Which means that there is no use complaining about it. You’ll win it next year. This year was a fluke. Without that horrid Defense professor mucking things up, they never would have even been awarded those points.” Vega replied calmly.

Narcissa raised an eyebrow at Vega’s words. What did she know about the incident with Quirrell? Did she know something about the Dark Lord? Narcissa shivered imperceptibly. She did not want her children involved in any such matters, but she did not think that Lucius would agree with her. There’d be no convincing him otherwise.

At that moment, Lucius Malfoy swept into the room, his cloak flouncing around behind him. Narcissa pursed her lips in amusement. The dramatics of the Malfoy men seemed quite aligned with the muster of albino peacocks that had always resided in the Manor’s grounds. As soon as the doors to the room had flown open, Draco shot straight up, putting his hands in his lap, and a stoic expression on his face. Narcissa realized sadly that she didn’t need to speak with Draco about his actions around his father, he already knew too well. She stood up as Lucius approached her.

“Lucius, my love,” she said with affection. “What is the matter?”

He gave her a peck on the cheek and turned to his children.

“Leave. Your mother and I have private matters to discuss.”

“Come on, Draco. Let’s go flying.” Vega said as she stood up.

Once the children were gone, Lucius turned back to his wife. Narcissa sat back down and continued to drink her tea.

“What is going on, Lucius?” She asked, looking up at him.

“I have been learning everything that I can about the occurrence with Quirrell and the Potter boy.” He sat down across from her, pouring himself a cup of tea into the extra cup. “It seems that Quirrell became overzealous in trying to please the Dark Lord. They both thought that confronting Potter was a good idea, seeing as the boy grew up with no knowledge of his magical inheritance. Somehow the boy managed to quite literally turn Quirrell to dust, although I have yet to find out just how.”

“Is he gone now though? For good?” Narcissa asked.

“The Dark Lord has… ways.” He paused. “I do not think he will return for some time, but I believe that it will inevitably happen. For the time being, we must be sure there are no ways to connect ourselves with him.”

“Or we could dispose of all such connections permanently.” Narcissa took a sip of her tea.

Lucius’ eyes flashed. “You know that it is not that simple. I-“

“I know that your lust for power puts our children in danger, yet you do not see it that way. This will not end well for you. I won’t allow the same outcome for them.” Narcissa said sternly.

Lucius pursed his lips, but did not reply. He knew better than to try and persuade Narcissa to his side in this matter. They sat in silence for a few moments before Narcissa spoke again.

“Speaking of such matters, what does Vega know of this event?”

“She knows of it all.” Lucius replied matter-of-factly.

“And why does our thirteen-year-old daughter know of such things?” She asked, raising an eyebrow in question.

“It has… come up… in her history lessons.” He answered cautiously.

Narcissa hummed in acknowledgment. “You insisted upon being her tutor for history lessons, did you not?”

“Yes, I did. It is important for her to know everything of the Malfoy line and who better to teach her than the oldest living Malfoy himself?”

“She does not need to know of you and your father’s alliance with the Dark Lord, nor does she need to know of the Black family alliance either. They are unnecessary, especially for a child to learn.”

“Well, Cissa, I am afraid it is too late. And Draco will be receiving the same lessons this summer. A war is coming, do not tell me you don’t feel it brewing just below the surface. They must know what is right, and where the family stands on this matter.”

“I believe what you mean to say, is that they must know where  _ you _ stand on this matter, Lucius. Never once was I consulted on the course of action this family has taken. I have just been expected to follow in your stead. Our children do not need to be involved with the Dark Lord at all.”

Lucius sighed in exasperation. “If you recall, the Dark Lord knows of Vega. And Draco is not a secret. If the Dark Lord calls upon me for the children to assist in the demise of Harry Potter, I cannot refuse him. You know this. The Mark does not allow it to be so. It is better to educate them on the possibilities of the future, so that they may be prepared for the worst outcome. You should know this better than anyone, my love. I know exactly where you stand on the matter. However, it was not in my power to choose another path.”

“Your choice may have been taken from you, Lucius, but you did not have to take our children’s choice away from them as well.” Narcissa said, before sweeping out of the room.


	3. Chapter Three

**24 August 1992, _Malfoy Manor_**

“Father, I want to go with you and Draco.” Vega said, blocking her father’s exit out of the room.

“It’s too dangerous, and you know it. Someone could see you.” Lucius said, moving his cane towards her to usher her out of way.

Vega didn’t move, crossing her arms over her chest. “I’ll wear a cloak and keep the hood up.”

Lucius sighed. “Yes, and at the faintest breeze it will blow off, exposing you.”

“Then I’ll take some polyjuice.” She shrugged.

He raised an eyebrow at her. “And where are you going to get some?”

Vega smirked. “I know where you keep your stores.”

Lucius was inwardly approving.  _ She would have done well in Slytherin _ , he thought. “Be my guest then, my dear. And when someone recognizes you in your disguised persona, don’t expect me to get you out of that dilemma.” He paused. “Why must you go to Diagon Alley so badly?”

“I want to see what it is like. I’ve never seen England’s Wizarding World. It’s not fair that I only get to see the Wizarding World’s in other countries. I should get to see the one that is part of my history.” Vega replied passionately.

This was only a half truth. Yes, Vega wanted to see Diagon Alley. However, she wasn’t intensely interested in it. Rather, she knew that her mother wasn’t going on this outing with Draco and her father. As the older sibling, it was definitely her job to protect the younger one, even if that meant protecting him from her own father. She knew that her Father wouldn’t hit Draco in public, but she could distract him from the verbal abuse he was sure to inflict upon the boy.

“You would risk your entire life, just to see some old bricks for a couple hours?” Lucius asked.

Vega nodded vigorously. Lucius revised his previous thought. Maybe she  _ wouldn’t _ have made it in Slytherin, seeing as the girl was acting more and more like a brash Gryffindor each day. He shuddered imperceptibly. A Malfoy, in Gryffindor? Not bloody likely.

“Fine, fine. I will disillusion you. You will stay by my side at all times. And you  _ will not _ alert Draco to your presence. The boy would give you away with one glance.”

Vega’s face lit up and she clapped her hands together happily. “Thank you so much, father! I’ll go fetch my cloak quickly.”

“Make sure you do. Draco and I are leaving soon.” Lucius replied, then watched his daughter practically run out the door of the room.

* * *

Vega watched Draco tear a page out of a book and walk down the stairs. He began snarling at three other children his age. But Vega was confused why he tore the page out of the book. Not only did he know better than to ruin a piece of literature, he was as fond of books as she was and would never commit such an atrocity anyways. She’d confront him about it later. She was quite positive he already knew she was here anyways, despite her father wishing to keep him in the dark. She turned her attention back to the group in front of her. 

Vega recognized the three Gryffindors immediately. Ronald Weasley’s ginger hair and obviously hand-me-down robes immediately clued her in to his surname. Having studied the family trees of all of the Sacred Twenty-Eight gave her the knowledge that he was the youngest son. Hermione Granger’s big bushy hair and the fact that she constantly held Draco’s attention from the second he recognized her in the shop was a dead giveaway. Harry Potter was, of course, the most obvious. His messy hair barely covered his scar, and his round spectacles had been the topic of many of Draco’s insults over the summer.

In all honesty, she couldn’t see what was so wrong with the group. They seemed fine enough to her, although she knew that her father had supported the Dark Lord during the Wizarding War. She understood the worries of Pureblood families. With muggleborns “invading” the Wizarding World, their old traditions would die out. They would all be in danger, and  _ no one _ wanted another Salem Witch Trials. But she really didn’t think it was that big of a deal. The magic world really needed some of the muggle world’s advancements. Electricity seemed pretty handy, if you asked her.

Her father suddenly appeared and she shrunk back a little, even though she was still disillusioned. She had disobeyed him by not staying by his side as he said. He couldn’t have reasonably expected her to follow that order, however that wouldn’t matter to him. He’d still punish her. Although he was always more lenient with her than he was with Draco. Arthur Weasley and a young girl who must be his daughter also joined the group. 

Vega didn’t listen to what was being said, she focused more on the actions that were happening. She watched her father pick up the young girl’s books from a bucket she carried. He examined them momentarily with disgust on his face, and then she watched as he discreetly added another book to his hands before dropping them back into her bucket with a sneer. It was so subtle that Vega doubted anyone else noticed. She expected the only reason she even noticed was due to the fact that she was watching every action in the group, rather than listening to what words were being exchanged. The groups departed and she followed closely behind her father.

* * *

“I’ve heard some interesting news, Draco. Care to hear what I’ve learned?” Vega said, closing the door behind her. 

She had found Draco in the library, at a table in the back of the room. This was where they would usually find each other. It was one of the only places where they could be alone. Not to mention, they’d managed to convince their personal house elves to put some warding on the space to block intruders from listening in and alert them when someone was near. Vega was quite sure that their parents, or at least their mother, knew of the enchantments. Thankfully, they’d never questioned them about it, and seemed fine with their small bubble of privacy.

“What are you talking about?” Draco said, barely looking up from  _ The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2 _ . 

Vega sat down in front of him, and pulled the book towards her.

“I heard that  _ you _ vandalized a poor,  _ defenseless _ book at Flourish and Blotts.” She said, smirking at him.

Fear flit across Draco’s face for only a second before he quickly appeared nonchalant. Vega was proud, he was getting better at it. She’d always be able to read him though, that was just something that came with being siblings.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about. Where did you hear that?” He replied, trying to take his book back.

Vega threw her hand down heavily on top of it to stop him. She gave him maniacal grin, baring her teeth.

“I’ll tell you mine, if you tell me yours.”

Draco gulped, and narrowed his eyes at her. Vega smiled a little smaller.

“You know the rules: nothing leaves our bubble.” She reminded him reassuringly.

Draco nodded, and swallowed thickly before speaking. “Father has done something, Vega. I don’t know everything about it, only what I heard when he was taking a floo call with someone and his office door was cracked open. I don’t know who he was talking to and I was hiding around the corner. He said that he was sending a book to Hogwarts this year, and that it’s cursed. Vega, this book is going to cause the Chamber of Secrets to open again.” His brow furrowed and he looked worried.

“Are you sure? Are you  _ absolutely _ certain, Draco?” Vega asked.

“Yes. I should have told you sooner, as soon as I overheard the conversation. I wanted to do more research on the beast that lives within the Chamber.” Draco replied sheepishly.

“Well? What did you find then?” She asked, temporarily ignoring that he had hidden this from her.

“Nothing concrete, to be honest. But, there are stories that suggest that Salazar Slytherin once owned a Basilisk. The page I tore out was about Basilisks, from a very old text on magical creatures. He left the creature in the Chamber, and only he or his descendants would be able to control it. I’ve been researching his family tree to find out who at the school might be able to control it, but I haven’t had much luck. The records here at home seem to be incomplete. I should think the records at Hogwarts would be a little better, seeing as he’s one of the founders.” Draco finished.

“Alright. Let me know what you find out either way though. If you can’t find anything else out, I may be able to convince Father to find me some texts. We wouldn’t want him to suspect anything though, so that will be a last resort.” She paused. “The last time the Chamber was opened, a muggleborn died. I expect it will be something similar this time around as well. Which means you should have nothing to worry about. But you know not to look it in the eyes, yes?”

“Yes, although if it were to catch me off guard, I wouldn’t stand a chance.” Draco replied.

“We’ve still got some time before you leave for Hogwarts. We’ll come up with some ways to avoid it.” Vega answered, already trying to think of possibilities.

“Anyways. I’ve told you mine. Now tell me yours.” Draco smirked.

Vega let out a breath. “Okay.” She paused, and then whispered even though no one else could hear her. “I was  _ at _ Flourish and Blotts today. Father disillusioned me. I saw the whole thing.” She mirrored Draco’s smirk.

“I knew it!” Draco shouted. “I thought you were there! But I never thought Father would actually let you go! So you saw me tear the page from the book?”

Vega nodded. “And I actually saw Father place an extra book in the Weasley girl’s bucket. That must be the book you heard him talking about.”

Draco seemed to relax a little bit. “That’s a relief. I had been worried that I was going to have to transport the book into the school and do something with it.”

“You’ll want to try and watch her, figure out what she does with it and how it’s actually cursed. Obviously, don’t let anyone catch you watching.”

Draco nodded.

“Show me the books you were researching Slytherin in, and then let’s keep looking a bit. We’ll make sure there really isn’t anything here before you leave.” Vega said, standing and watching him expectantly.

* * *

**19 June 1993, _Malfoy Manor_**

“I still can’t believe you told her that she’d be next.” Vega said exasperatedly. She moved a chess piece on the board. They were in their corner of the library.

“I’ve already heard it from mum, Vega. I don’t need to hear it from you, too. Besides, I was right, wasn’t I?” Draco sneered. He responded, not noticing that he had left his king open.

Vega sighed. “I’m just saying that your intolerance and disdain don’t have to be quite so apparent. If people think you’re so opposed to the ‘mudbloods' then you won’t get very far. Our name and our vaults can get you far, but they aren’t inexhaustible.” She moved her piece. “Check.” She leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms over her chest, and giving her brother a smirk.

Draco snarled. “Ugh, you’re just like  _ her.”  _ He knocked a few of the pieces to the ground as he stood up and began moving to the door.

“Don’t throw a tantrum with me because the women in your life are all superior to you.” Vega said, a wicked gleam in her eyes.

Draco stilled immediately, and whipped back around. “Hermione Granger is not, as you put it, ‘ _ a woman in my life. _ ’” 

“You certainly seem to talk about her enough in your letters to me, and even more so when you’re actually home. Just don’t let father hear about this little crush you have.” Vega replied smugly.

“I do  _ not _ have a crush on Hermione Granger!” Draco yelled, his voice raising in pitch.

“Would you be quiet?!” Vega hissed, looking towards the book stacks nervously. They may have powerful house elf magic on their side, but that didn’t mean they shouldn’t still be wary. Then she spoke a little louder. “You  _ doth protest too much, methinks. _ ”

Draco sneered. “Don’t let father hear about you reading the work of a muggle playwright.” He said, mimicking her earlier sentiment.

“And how, dear brother, would you know that it is the work of a muggle?” Vega replied, raising an eyebrow at him.

Draco rolled his eyes at her.

“We both know that you don’t hate them as much as you pretend. It’s all a ruse to keep Father happy. And I wholeheartedly agree that it’s what you need to do. But maybe you shouldn’t be  _ quite _ so vocal about it. One day, you’ll be free to ask the Granger girl out on a date, but she’s going to hate you too much to even consider it.” Vega smirked at him, and then picked up the pieces he had knocked over earlier. When Draco moved to retort, she cut him off. “Anyways, we’ve gotten off topic. So Granger was petrified because she made eye contact through the mirror. Do you know how she figured out that it was a Basilisk?”

Draco smiled nervously, rubbing the back of his neck, and refusing to make eye contact with her. “I  _ may have  _ confronted her in the library and practically shoved that page from Flourish and Blotts in her face?”

Vega snorted. “Are you asking me if that’s what happened, or telling me?”

“That’s what happened.” Draco nodded, still refusing to look at her.

“And what do you mean by ‘confronted her?’ What exactly did you do?” Vega asked curiously.

“I  _ definitely  _ taunted her about being a mudblood, as usual. I believe I said something along the lines of ‘you should avoid eye contact with everyone, both parties might end up petrified in horror,’ and then tossed the page down at her and left before she could reply again.” Draco said quietly.

Vega shook her head at him. “Oh, Draco.” She paused and stared at him for a moment. “I think next year, you shouldn’t try to taunt her so much. Don’t seek her out and just try to ignore her if you can only insult her like that. She isn’t the only muggleborn there, you don’t have to focus on her.” Vega hoped he would listen to her request. He was going to create an enemy in Hermione Granger if he didn’t. And she didn’t think she’d be able to help him if it came to that. “So then is that when Potter and Weasley went down to the Chamber?”

“Yes. Like I told you, I don’t know what’s true and what’s gossip. But I heard that they made Lockhart go with them. He took Weasley’s broken wand and it backfired on him. That’s why he’s in the Janus Thickey ward now. Apparently, he’s lied about all of the stories he’s written about. He’s taken the credit of other people’s accomplishments and modified their memories. I mean, I knew he was a tosser before, but that’s ridiculous.” They started to set the pieces back up for another game.

“I was reading a piece by Rita Skeeter that said about the same thing. I was wondering how much of it was true.” Vega voiced her thoughts.

“Anyways, apparently a version of the Dark Lord was placed within that book Father gave to the Weaslette. It used to be the Dark Lord’s diary. Weaslette was talking to him all year, crying to him about all her boy troubles and whatnot. He gained energy from the interactions enough to convince her to go into the chamber and then he back to suck away her life to try and restore himself. Potter somehow managed to kill the Basilisk and he destroyed the diary. And I’m sure you heard that he managed to free Dobby.” Draco continued.

“Oh, yes. He came home that day and was cursing up a storm. I’m sure he would have physically been cursing things had Mother not gotten to him first. He ended up drinking in his office the rest of the day.” Vega paused. “I’m glad he’s be freed though. Father was quite cruel to him, and he didn’t deserve that.”

Draco nodded. “Vega, what kind of curse was on that book? How could it have been bringing the Dark Lord back to life? And was it really him? Or just something that appeared to be him? Do you think there are more?” He prattled nervously.

Vega’s brow furrowed as she looked at Draco. “I don’t know. But it’s probably one of the darkest forms of magic that exists. Maybe I’ll see if I can subtly ask Father during my next lesson with him.” She moved a pawn, starting another game. “Be careful this summer, Draco. Without his personal house elf to abuse, I expect Father will be much easier to irritate.”

Draco moved his own pawn and nodded his head at her. “Don’t worry, I will.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've got the next chapter and a half written, but I want to get a bit farther in writing it before posting so as not to fall behind! Chapter length picks up drastically after this one because I'll be going through each year/book across multiple chapters and it's where we start seeing actual changes from the series!
> 
> Anyways, please let me know what you think!


	4. Chapter Four

**25 August 1994, _Quidditch World Cup Camp Grounds, Dartmoor_**

“See, Draco, I told you Ireland was going to win!” Vega danced around their tent happily. Her long blond hair was tied back into a braid with an Ireland themed tie at the end. This was as enthusiastically dressed as her father would allow, much to her disappointment.

“Yeah, yeah. Whatever, Vega. That’s only the hundredth time you’ve said it, thanks.” Draco crossed his arms over his chest. He had opted out of sporting any fan colors, it would have been far too easy for his father to disapprove.

Outside, it seemed that Ireland was celebrating their victory too, and they weren’t being quiet about it.

“What’s going on out there?” Vega asked, walking to the tent door. Just as she reached it their father walked in, and directly to a bag he had left on his bed.

“Neither of you will leave this tent until I return. Do you understand?” He said sternly as he dug around in the bag. He found what he was looking for and hid it in his cloak away from Draco and Vega’s eyes.

“Yes, Father.” Vega said, looking at him. Draco responded the same.

“Good. I’ll be back shortly.” Lucius said as he swept out of the tent.

After she was sure that he was gone, Vega moved to the tent entrance and peered out of it.

“Vega, Father is going to be angry if he catches you. And we both know somehow he’ll end up angry at  _ me _ .” Draco said, moving towards her. She didn’t move. “Vega, come on-“ Draco stopped speaking when he heard Vega’s sudden gasp.

“Draco, come look at this.” Draco didn’t move. “ _ Now. _ ”

Nervous, Draco moved to the entrance and stuck his head out the entrance next to Vega’s. Outside, there was a riot going on. What had been mistaken for cheering, was now very clearly heard as screaming. There were figures completely cloaked in black, except for their white skull-looking masks which seemed to be glowing in the moonlight. They were obviously the cause of the destruction, as Draco watched them lighting things on fire and attacking people. He saw Arthur Weasley dueling one of these figures. Three kids stopped in front of him, and it took him a moment to recognize them.

“Which way do we go?” Ron Weasley asked, sound completely panicked.

“I don’t know!” Granger replied, frantically looking around for somewhere safe to go.

Potter suddenly pointed. “There! The forest!” He said, and off they ran.

They were barely out of sight when Vega grabbed Draco’s hand and she dragged him out of the tent in the same direction.

“What are you doing?!” Draco exclaimed in a loud whisper.

“Following them. They may need help.” Vega said, pulling him along close behind the trio.

“And you think  _ we  _ can help them? Better yet, you think  _ they’ll  _ want  _ my  _ help?” Draco sneered at her in disbelief. “Not to mention,  _ I _ don’t  _ want _ to help them!”

“Once again, Draco, you can’t fool me. Now, shush.” She said.

They followed the others as they disappeared into the forest. In the dark, Vega and Draco barely made out the shadows of the trio seemingly being pushed farther into the trees. Draco and Vega heard a shout of pain as they came to a stop a distance away from the other three.

“Ron? Are you alright?” Granger asked, shuffling around in the dark. “This is stupid —  _ lumos! _ ”

Draco and Vega quickly hid behind the trees nearest to them as the area around them was suddenly illuminated. They saw Weasley sprawled out on the ground ahead of Granger and Potter.

Ron looked up sheepishly before standing up. “I guess I tripped.”

Draco snorted quietly, and he saw Vega send him a glare. Draco rolled his eyes and made a split second decision. He stepped out from behind the tree, plastering a sneer on his face.

“Well, what do you expect, with feet that size?” he drawled.

The trio whipped around at the sound of his voice. He heard Vega shift a bit behind her tree, probably considering showing herself too. Draco folded his arm and leaned against the tree she was behind. He knew he would be punished somehow by his father for leaving their tent, but he didn’t need to get in trouble for Vega outing her own existence too.

Shouldn’t you be moving along by now?  _ She’ll _ be spotted immediately if you stick around.” Draco nodded his head at Granger. A large blast sounded from behind him, and they saw a green light bounce off everything around them momentarily.

Granger narrowed her eyes at him. “Just what are you saying, Malfoy?”

“Granger, do you honestly believe they’re just attacking everyone out there? They’re looking for mu-  _ your _ kind.” Draco shrugged nonchalantly. “I mean, stick around, if you want. I’m sure everyone will get a laugh out of whatever form of torture they deem acceptable for you.”

“Hermione is a witch,” Potter shouted at him.

Granger grabbed Potter’s arm. “Forget about it, Harry. There’s no use in that. We’re all in danger.”

“How would  _ you _ know who they’re after, Malfoy? Mummy and daddy out there wearing masks, too?” Weasley snarled.

Draco smirked. “If they were, I wouldn’t be likely to tell you, now would I, Weaselbee?”

Weasley began to take a step towards Draco, but Granger stopped him as well.

“Come  _ on _ , the both of you! If Malfoy says they’re after muggleborns, imagine what will happen if they find  _ you _ , Harry. Let’s go!” Granger tugged on both of their arms.

“Better keep your big bushy head down, Granger,” Draco said as the three began to walk away.

Once they had disappeared from view, Draco cast  _ lumos _ himself and turned towards Vega.

“Why did you do that?!” Vega asked, looking shocked.

Draco began to walk back towards camp. The screaming seemed to be slowly fading, but they’d still need to be cautious. Their white blond hair is immediately recognizable, but that didn’t mean they were safe in any way.

“You wanted to follow them because they might need help. Well, the Weasel brought them almost to a complete standstill, and they needed to keep moving.” Draco shrugged.

Vega froze, and it took Draco a moment to realize. He stopped and turned to her. “What?” He asked, seeing the strange look on her face.

Vega raised an eyebrow at him and crossed her arms over her chest. “You mean to tell me you taunted them to get a move on because of  _ me _ ?”

Draco breathed through his nose heavily. “I know you think I have some schoolboy crush on Granger, but I truly want nothing to do with the know-it-all.” He rolled his eyes.

Vega smirked. “I didn’t mention Granger at all. You’re the one that jumped to that conclusion.” Her smirk turned into a full blown smile.

Draco felt his cheeks heat up a bit, but he quickly turned and began walking again. “Come on. We need to get back to the tent before Father gets there, or before he sees us out here. I don’t need to get a lashing for this, thanks.”

He heard her sigh and the crunch of the leaves on the forest floor as she began to follow him. As they neared the edge of the forest, Draco put out his lit wand. They stopped just inside the forest to see what was happening. It was eerily quiet, and there was a thick layer of smoke settling around the campsite. Their noses burned with the overwhelming smell of burning woo0d and ashes.

“I can’t see anyone moving around over there, can you?” Vega whispered from next to Draco.

Draco peered at the area a little longer before responding. “No, I don’t. Let’s disillusion ourselves anyways, just to be safe.”

Vega nodded, and Draco watched as she cast the spell and faded away. He could make out a slight outline of her only because he knew where she was. He cast the spell on himself and felt the coolness of his magic wash over him.

“Okay, since we can’t see each other, let’s just get back to the tent as quickly and quietly as possible. Hopefully, Father isn’t there yet. Don’t pause anywhere too long, all of that smoke will settle around you and make you noticeable.” 

“I know, Draco.” Vega responded. “See you there.”

Draco heard her footsteps fade away as she headed towards the campsite. He could see their tent at the far end of the row of tents, and began heading that way. Rather than going all the way around, he’d slip between his tent and a neighboring one. Vega obviously didn’t have the same idea, as her footsteps had headed towards the opening in the row of tents. She could handle herself, Draco knew. She  _ was _ older than him, after all.

Draco had managed to reach the tent without any issues. He stood outside the tent for just a few seconds, listening for any movement that would tell him if Vega was nearby. After hearing nothing, he stepped into the tent and dropped the charm concealing him. As he looked up, his eyes connected with his Father’s and he gulped.

Lucius raised a brow. “And just where have  _ you  _ been, Draco?” Lucius was sitting on a small leather couch, a rocks glass filled with an amber liquid in his hand. “Did I not instruct that the both of you stay put?”

“You did, Father.” Draco responded succinctly.

“And? What was so important that you both decided to disobey me? And where is your sister, anyways?” Lucius asked tersely, taking a sip of his drink.

Draco took a few steps towards his Father and glanced back nervously at the tent opening. “I do not know where she is, I had expected her to be back now.”

Lucius stood up suddenly. “You let her go off by herself? You know that no one may even know of her existence, Draco!” Then Lucius began to speak more to himself. “I don’t know why I let that girl convince me that she could—“

The two froze as they suddenly heard a spell shouted, coming from the open space in the center of the tents.

_ “MORSMORDE!” _

Almost immediately following, the sound of an explosion echoed around them.

* * *

Vega trudged off towards the opening walkway into the campsite. She knew she should skirt around the edges, as she expected Draco was now doing. But she was cooped up in the Manor and rarely got to go off on her own. Not to mention, she needed to know what was happening. She needed to see it with her own eyes.

She was quite certain that this was the work of Death Eaters. A group of the Dark Lord’s followers who had disappeared when he vanished, but why would they suddenly become active once more? She just knew that her Father had been digging around for a mask earlier, and he had been out here hurting innocent people. Could this mean that the Dark Lord was closer to returning than they previously thought?

Vega reached the outer edge of the tents and suddenly someone was running past her, barely missing her. She recognized their silhouette as Harry Potter, but he was alone. He must have lost his two friends at some point. Why he would run towards the center of the camp was beyond her, though. He didn’t know much about stealth, did he? She followed him. As she reached the open area in the middle of the campsite, she heard a raspy voice bellow out a spell.

_ “MORSMORDE!” _

She saw a beam of green light shot straight into the air, and suddenly above her high in the sky was a wispy moving shape. She watched as the spell formed a skull, and the skull’s mouth opened, revealing a snake twisting and turning. She’d heard of this spell. Her Father had spoken of this during her lessons with him. A spell to signify that the Death Eaters had wreaked havoc somewhere, although that is most definitely not how her Father had explained it.

Vega was pulled back to the present when she heard Harry Potter’s voice shouting at whoever it was that had cast the Dark Mark. She couldn’t make out what he said, but she definitely heard the other person cast a  _ bombarda!  _ In Harry’s direction. Vega shielded her face quickly, and felt some earthy debris bounce off of her. She looked back up in the direction of the voices that were now quiet. She ran forward without thinking, wondering if the Great Harry Potter had met an untimely end.

She found his body with some large pieces of rubble scattered around him. His arms and legs were sprawled around him. His glasses had managed to stay on his face, although they were significantly crooked. She removed her disillusionment—the dust was so thick, and would be for a few moments, that she knew she wouldn’t be seen unless someone was two feet away from her. Vega had yet to learn a spell to check someone’s heart rate, but she thought she knew how to check for a pulse from the Muggle books she had read. She knelt down by him and pressed two fingers to the side of his neck, just below his jaw. She frowned, wondering if she was doing it right, and shifted her fingers a bit. She gasped when she suddenly felt a thumping below the surface of his skin. Quickly grabbing her wand, she whispered an  _ enervate. _

Harry Potter awoke with a large jolt. He quickly fixed his glasses and began to sit up. His eyes were flitting all around him, and he didn’t seem to notice Vega right away. Once he did though, his green eyes locked with hers and they became as large as saucers.

"Wh- Who are you?" He rasped out.

Vega stared at him for a moment. This was the first time someone had asked her that, and neither of her parents were there. She could tell him the truth, if she so desired. But did she? How badly had she wanted someone,  _ anyone _ , to know her  _ real  _ name? To know who she  _ really  _ was?

"I'm Vega M-" She cut off when she heard fast paced footsteps coming near.

"Harry? Are you here?" Hermione Granger's voice called out.

Vega quickly disillusioned herself quickly, and then she was gone.

Harry swallowed heavily before speaking. "Here, Hermione. I'm over here."

Suddenly, his two best friends were surrounding him.

"Are you alright? What happened?" Ron asked.

Hermione was looking up at the illuminated sky, a nervous expression on her face.

"Hermione, do you know what that is?" Harry asked.

"That's the Dark Mark, Harry!  _ His  _ sign!" She looked at Harry incredulously.

" _ Voldemort's—?" _

"Did you see who cast it?" Hermione cut him off.

"Well, yes, but not a good look. And then he exploded the whole area. And then... well, this girl was suddenly kneeling over me and I have no idea—" Harry tried to explain.

"What girl?" She asked him.

Harry paused for a moment. Who  _ was  _ she?

"I don't know. But I'm going to find out."


	5. Chapter Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapters from here on out should be much longer!
> 
> As always, please let me know what you think!

**27 August 1994, _Riddle House, Little Hangleton_**

Lucius Malfoy knelt with his head bowed before the deformed shape of the Dark Lord. When the Dark Mark on his arm suddenly began to burn the morning after the Quidditch World Cup, he had been thoroughly confused. But, ever the faithful servant, he immediately answered the call. Imagine his surprise when he found himself inside a muggle house, facing the back of a chair, and heard his Dark Lord’s voice calling from the other side of it. Now, knowing what the Dark Lord wanted and that he could not refuse, he wondered if he could have feigned ignorance at the call.

“Lucius, do you understand what will happen should your family fail me in this endeavor? The Dark Lord rasped.

Even without a fully formed body, and looking like a helpless thing, the Dark Lord was still capable of sounding just the same amount of sinister as he did all those years ago. Only now his voice held an animalistic quality to it as well, almost like there were two voices speaking at once, resonating at slightly offset pitches. The feeling of it was akin to nails on a chalkboard.

“Yes, my Lord. She has been groomed for this, to do your bidding.” Lucius replied. Oh, if Narcissa had heard such words from him, he knew he would be as good as dead.

“See that it is so. And what of Draco? Has he been prepared as well?” Voldemort asked.

Lucius gulped. “Not to the same extent, my Lord. His time at Hogwarts has lessened how much I could make available to him. His studies continue over the holidays however. Do you have a task for him as well?” 

“Not yet, but I have plans. Keep preparing him. His task will be an important one to usher in our new era. You might be able to recover should your daughter fail you, but do not expect the same result should your son fail as well. Now go, you have much to do before the train leaves King’s Cross on September first.” The Dark Lord waved his disfigured hand towards Lucius in dismissal.

Lucius got up and left the building as quickly as he could. The Dark Lord was right, he had many arrangements to make in a very short amount of time. As much as he hated the idea, Vega would be going to Hogwarts.

* * *

**1 September 1994, _The Hogwarts Express_**

Draco sighed. “Tell me one more time. Quickly, before Theo and the others show up.” He closed his eyes and rubbed his hand across his forehead a few times.

Vega rolled her eyes. “Father gave me very simple instructions. Step one: go to Hogwarts. Step two: get close to Harry Potter. Step three: feed information to him about anything and everything, which then gets relayed to the Dark Lord. Step four: eventual betrayal, leading to a distraction and Potter’s demise.” She crossed her arms over her chest and laid back on the seat, stretching her feet out across the rest of the bench.

“Why is this happening? I thought you were supposed to be some well-kept secret for your entire life. Not that I don’t appreciate this change, but really. Was their plan always to reveal your existence in one of the most ostentatious ways possible?” Draco questioned, whining a bit at the end. 

“Honestly, it’s all news to me, Draco. I don’t even particularly want to be doing this.” She shrugged. “But, I’m a Malfoy. My sense of self-preservation is quite high. So my indifference leans towards what the Dark Lord is requiring until a time that I see the tide turning in the other direction.”

“That’s another thing. No Malfoy has ever been sorted anywhere other than Slytherin, in the centuries of our existence. How do you expect to cozy up to Potter if you’re in the House everyone assumes is nothing but evil? Potter won’t give you a second glance, unless you cause him ire. I should know, it’s my favorite pastime.” Draco smirked.

“Don’t you worry about it, little brother. I have a plan.” She put her hands behind her head and closed her eyes. “Now, let me sleep a bit, yeah?”

Draco scowled, but kept quiet. Just as he was picking up _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 4,_ Blaise Zabini and Theodore Nott slid open their compartment door and walked in. Draco heard Vega sigh quietly, but didn’t say anything. Both boys were already dressed in their school robes, despite being hours from the school.

“Oi, mate. We’ve been looking everywhere for you!” Blaise exclaimed. “We had a right time trying to ditch Pansy, but we’ll have to go back for our trunks eventually.” 

Blaise moved to sit next to Draco. Theo looked to the seat across from the boys, finally noticing the not-actually-sleeping girl spread across the entire bench. He blinked twice, then looked between both Draco and Vega multiple times. He opened his mouth, an obvious question about to come out, but was interrupted by Blaise.

“Who’s the bird, Draco? Found yourself a girlfriend?” He waggled his eyes at Draco suggestively.

Draco, for his part, managed to keep his composure instead of gagging at the thought. He outwardly only raised an eyebrow in question at Blaise. At just the same time, Vega snorted and sat up. She ran her hand through her hair, hopefully smoothing out any tangles from laying back.

She sent an amused look at the tawny-skinned boy sitting next to Draco, and gestured at the one standing to sit. As he did, she stood and looked towards Draco.

“Obviously a nap is not happening now, so I’ll wander around for a while.” She moved towards the compartment door

Draco furrowed his brow. “You have money for the trolley? Don’t forget to be back after a while to change into your robes before we arrive.” He moved to take some money out of his pocket, but Vega stopped him.

“Yes, I do. I’ll be fine. See you in a bit.” She responded, exiting the compartment. As she closed the door, she heard the one she assumed was Theo asking who she was, and why she looked like Draco.

Vega looked to her left, and then to her right. It’s not as if she actually had anywhere else to go. She didn’t truly know anyone yet. She supposed she could get a head start on cozying up to Potter, if she could find him, that is. Luck was on her side, as it were, because she had only passed a few compartments when she suddenly heard voices coming from an open one.

“Are we going to talk about what happened at the Cup? What do you think Malfoy’s deal was?” She heard Ronald Weasley say, none too quietly.

“Hush, Ron! Someone could hear you!” Hermione Granger reprimanded. “Harry, close the door, would you? The last thing we need is for Malfoy to hear anyone mentioning him.”

Vega rushed forward, wanting to make it there before Harry closed it. He noticed her immediately and froze in the doorway. He blinked a few times, and Vega was wondering if he planned to say anything at all.

“Hello.” She said quietly.

Before he could respond, Hermione spoke from behind him again.

“Harry? Is something the matter?” She asked, sounding concerned.

That seemed to pull the boy out of his stupor because he suddenly shouted, “You!”

Vega just raised an eyebrow and smirked at him. “Well, are you going to let me in?”

Harry wasn’t expecting that sort of response, and blinked a few times, before stepping out of the way. Vega stepped into the compartment and slid the door closed behind her. Hermione and Ron were standing, wide eyed, wands out, and shocked expressions on their faces. Harry was still just staring at her, but he had sat down at least. Vega sat down across from him, next to where Hermione still stood, but was calming down. Ron flopped back into his seat next to Harry.

“Who are _you?_ ” Ron asked, a confused look on his face.

“My name is Vega.” She decided right away, she would avoid her last name until it was necessary. Obviously, that wouldn’t go too well with this crowd. At least for now. She already had her sob story lined up, of course. She just needed to gain a bit of trust first.

Hermione let out a little gasp, and looked at Harry. “The girl from the Cup?” 

An expression of understanding crept across Ron’s face as he whipped his head to also look at Harry. Harry nodded, but seemed speechless still. Ron kept looking between Harry and Vega, waiting for his best friend to actually use some kind of words. It never came. However, Ron was quite adept at confrontation with a lack of tact.

“Well, what are you doing here?” He asked.

“Ron! Don’t be so rude!” Hermione exclaimed.

“I found you lot quite by accident, truth be told. I was wandering around the train a bit.” Vega responded.

“What House are you in, Vega? I don’t recall ever seeing you around before, and you look to be around our age.” Hermione asked.

“That’s because this is my first year at Hogwarts. I’ll be a fifth year, and I believe I’ll be sorted at the Return Feast tonight. Not that I didn’t try for a private sorting, I’ll admit.” She said the last bit with some distaste. Dumbledore had insisted in his letter response to her that it was a time-honored tradition and something to share with her classmates. She’d rolled her eyes at the words upon reading them.

“Where did you go before this? Were you at Beauxbaton’s?” Ron asked, almost seeming dreamy eyed and wistful at the thought.

Vega laughed at his expression. “No, I was homeschooled. My parents hired tutors.”

“You’re a Pureblood then, aren’t you? Tutors can’t possibly be cheap, and it seems only _certain_ people can have that type of success in this community.” Hermione responded, her upper lip raising a bit in disdain. She quickly put it back though, asking another question. “Would we know them? I must admit, you bear a striking resemblance to Draco Malfoy. Any relation?”

 _Ah,_ Vega thought. _So Hermione Granger truly_ wasn’t _dim._ In fact, she seemed quite good at putting things together as a silent observer in the room. She probably knew from the second she had seen Vega. Vega knew then she’d have to be extra cautious around the girl, to make sure her mission wasn’t discovered.

Vega cleared her throat a bit, looking once more at Harry. He now had a curious expression on his face, brow furrowed a bit. Now that Hermione pointed it out, he noticed her eyes were also a silvery-gray color similar to Malfoy’s. Of course, platinum blond hair didn’t really mean anything, since the Lovegood’s also shared that color naturally. But coupling that with her eyes is what truly gave him pause.

“Yes. Draco is my brother. My parents felt my life, just due to existing, would put me in such an amount of danger that it would be better to keep me at the Manor.” 

She raised her chin a bit, prepared for the trio to suddenly turn anger towards her. Harry and Ron were wide eyed in shock once again. Are these really the boys that defeated versions of the Dark Lord their first two years of school, and were rumored to have helped a convict escape their third? There had to be something she was missing. They were quite slow not only on the uptake, but on their reactions as well. Surprisingly though, Hermione just nodded in agreement. In fact, Vega would say she looked almost sheepish. She wasn’t the only one that noticed Hermione’s own reaction though and the Boy Who Lived finally spoke.

“Hermione, did you know about this? You don’t seem surprised at all.” Harry said, shooting her a confused look.

Hermione’s cheeks stained a reddish color before she spoke. “Well, you know that I can’t help myself when I don’t know something, Harry.” She paused, turning away from them to dig around in her book bag on the seat next to her. As she did, she continued speaking. “When you told me what you could of her: her first name, you thought her last name started with M, her hair and eye color, and that she seemed to be close in age to us, I went digging a bit.” She pulled an old-looking, leather-bound book out of her bag. “At first, I was looking up any Wizarding families I could find information on. Of course, then I recalled that in the British Wizarding society, really only the Lovegoods and the Malfoys have such a striking natural hair color. Not to say that the girl you had seen couldn’t have dyed it, obviously. And even further, the Lovegoods eye colors tend more towards deep blues and even green, whereas the Malfoys get their silvery-blue tones. And I came across-”

“Blimey, Hermione, could you maybe just get to the point?” Ron asked exasperatedly. 

Hermione froze, and looked to Harry. He gave her an apologetic look, but didn’t actually say anything. She sighed.

“Fine. Did you know that some Pureblood families, the most elite ones, such as the Sacred Twenty Eight, will hide the birth of their child from the rest of society if they believe that it could cause them to lose status? The Malfoy line hasn’t had a female blood descendant in centuries, let alone a first-born female. If Draco hadn’t been born, the Malfoy name would have become obsolete when Vega married. This, and the physical description I had of her led me to believe she was a Malfoy.” Hermione finished, shooting a glare at Ron.

Harry turned to Vega. “Is that right? Your parents hid you because you weren’t a boy?”

Vega smirked. “Ah, so he _can_ speak to me!” She said, not unkindly.

Harry’s cheeks tinged pink.

Vega’s smirk grew. “Yes, she’s right. If Draco hadn’t come along, they likely would have had to announce my existence sometime before I turned eleven. But, lucky them, Draco graced us all with his presence about a year later.” She snickered a bit at Draco’s expense. She turned to Hermione. “So you just assumed you were right based on those things? What’s this book?”

It was Hermione’s turn to give a smirk, although hers certainly didn’t carry the Malfoy bite to it. “Of course not. This book is about basic Pureblood traditions that I’m borrowing from Ron’s Mum. Despite the fact that the Weasley’s don’t participate in such nonsense as blood purity, they still had the books tucked away in a closet. One of them was a magical self-updating book on the family trees of the Sacred Twenty-Eight. A fascinating and complex magical item, if you ask me, although I’m hesitant to research it due to the obvious blood magic requirement of it all.” She paused, and Ron rolled his eyes at her. “When a member of their bloodline signs a birth certificate for a child, the magically binding document also registers the name of the child in the book. If they never sign a birth certificate, the book only shows the date and gender of the child born. This book actually showed me that the Malfoy’s had an unregistered daughter born to them in 1979. I expect no one outside one of these families even knows of the books’ existence, present company excluded.”

Vega was impressed. She certainly understood why Draco insisted she was a little swot and a know-it-all, but Vega really only saw that as a potential asset. If Hermione Granger didn’t know something, you could bet she would be finding out sooner rather than later. She understood how the two boys had made it through their first three years now. Certainly Hermione Granger was not the entire reason for their successes, but she most definitely expedited the process in a way that likely no other student their age could.

“What about you?” Harry said, pulling Vega out of her thoughts.

She turned to look at him. “What about me, what?”

“Do you believe in that blood purity rubbish? Draco certainly does, he had choice words for our Hermione last year. And while he may not have actually used _that_ word when we ran into him this summer, he still wasn’t anywhere near being kind.” Harry explained. His head was cocked to the side in curiosity.

Vega noted the possessiveness Harry used, _our_ Hermione. It was obvious that Harry wouldn’t be putting up with any such purity nonsense, not that she ever really expected him to. But it was certainly interesting to see the somewhat subtle display of protectiveness in the use of one simple word. Vega looked between the trio, who all seemed to be waiting with bated breath for her response. _Well_ , she thought, _the most believable lies come from truth._ If there was any way to begin gaining their favor, it would be by honesty, would it not?

“I’ll admit, going against everything you’ve been raised to believe isn’t easy. It certainly isn’t easy when you’re not allowed to leave your own home, especially not unchaperoned. My father is the one who was tutoring me in the more modern day histories of the Wizarding World. I’m quite capable of my own opinion, but it’s not something I can just suddenly start believing the complete opposite.”

Ron narrowed his eyes. “That seems like a roundabout way of not actually answering the question.”

Vega chuckled. She silently conceded that he wasn’t always as slow as he appeared to be. “My father believes that Muggleborns _stole_ magic from a more deserving Pureblood. I most definitely don’t believe that. Is that a good enough start, at least?” She looked to Hermione, knowing that the boys would look to her for a response seeing as she was the Muggleborn of the group.

Hermione seemed to contemplate it for a minute, looking at Vega and assessing her. She finally nodded. “Yes, I think it’s a start, at least. And you haven’t called me a Mudblood, which is much more than I can say for Draco-“

Ron snickered. “Don’t worry, ‘Mione. She’ll have her chance. Malfoy’s are always sorted into Slytherin. She’ll switch back to being a purist the second the second the Sorting Hat leaves her head.”

Vega stuck her nose in the air a bit, withholding her smirk as Harry whacked Ron’s head in retaliation. “We’ll see about that, Ronald Weasley.”

She paused, and then looked over to Hermione curiously. “What did you think of those Pureblood etiquette texts? I felt they were very dry, which makes sense since they haven’t been updated in centuries, but still. And, of course, their so-called etiquette is grotesquely out-dated. Arranged marriages?” Vega scoffed. “I’d rather not!”

Hermione perked up, and opened her mouth to respond, but was cut off by groans from the boys. They shared a look with each other.

“It might actually _be_ better if she’s sorted into Slytherin. Otherwise, we’ll have another Hermione on our hands!” Harry said, shooting Hermione a lopsided grin.

Hermione rolled her eyes before launching into an animated review of just how dreadful those books really were, and how badly she felt for Vega who had to actually study them. 

* * *

A few hours later and the energy in the compartment was still a bit tense, yet it had seemingly settled into something a bit more comfortable. After all, Ron’s prediction that Vega would turn on them by the night’s end still loomed over their heads. The trio were all silently skeptical she would turn on her family, but felt she wasn’t hurting anything so far by sharing their compartment. They also wondered just when the infamous Draco Malfoy would show his pointed face in search of her, and what that interaction might reveal.

Vega, for her part, was actually having quite a bit of fun. It was definitely a lovely change of scenery from her usual meetings with the children of her father’s foreign associates, as they were all usually just as stuffy as their own parents. She alternated between joining in on games of exploding snap with the boys, and chatting with Hermione about the upcoming year’s academics. Of course, she knew she wouldn’t be behind, but she had a family image to uphold. She’d already read through most of the required texts. Despite being a year below Vega, Hermione had a bit of knowledge of the types of spellwork the fifth years would be learning.

When the trolley had come by, Harry had immediately gotten up and bought a decent amount of treats for the whole compartment to share. Vega had tried to pay the boy back for some of it, but he insisted it wasn’t necessary. The concept of kindness for kindness’ sake, while not wholly unknown to Vega, was not something she had truly seen nor experienced. 

Her first reaction was one of wariness: what would The Boy Who Lived expect of her later, and how weighty of a debt was a simple chocolate frog to him? Of course, she struck that idea immediately, believing the boy to not be the type to cash in on even the simplest of debts owed to him. 

Her next thought was just that he was plain naive: Harry Potter would go through life handing things to people, and not expecting anything in return. He’d do it over and over again until he turned around to see he had nothing left to offer, and then where would he be? This also didn’t seem likely as he wasn’t completely dense. He seemed to pay attention to what he had actually spent, as if he had to worry about it lasting as long as possible.

She finally came to the conclusion that he was simply being kind to his friends. Or in Vega’s case, a potential friend. He didn’t seem so dim as to not take stock of what he himself had to offer, but when he had something to spare for the people he cared for, he seemed to do it without hesitation. At least, these were the kinds of things she had read about friends doing.

She could honestly say that she was enjoying herself with the trio, which was just fine by her. The more she needed to act, the more tangled her web would become. If any of it could be steeped in some truth, it just made things easier for her. She knew, however, she would need to leave them soon. The last thing she needed was for Draco to come mucking things up for her, which he was apt to do despite knowing of her task. As though he knew she was thinking of him, she saw a head of platinum blond walk past the compartment. Just before he was out of her view, however, he froze, turned around and looked directly at her. He raised an eyebrow at her, and she shot the most discreet, but nasty glare she could at him. He grinned mischievously at her, and reached for the compartment door handle. She rolled her eyes, and braced herself for the incoming confrontation. _Honestly, little brothers._


	6. Chapter Six

**1 September 1994, _The Hogwarts Express_**

“Yes, Draco?” Vega asked, raising an eyebrow at him and crossing her arms over his chest as he stepped in the compartment.

Thankfully, he was alone. The last thing she needed was the situation to be exacerbated by any of Draco’s dumb friends. She had heard about the thundering goons, Crabbe and Goyle, and the clingy Pansy Parkinson. She repressed a shudder at the thought of a pug-faced girl falling over herself for Draco.

“You’ll be wanting to change into your school robes soon, sister.” He said, matter-of-factly. However, he wasn’t even looking at her. His eyes were scanning the rest of the compartment, and she knew that he was looking for something to use as ammunition for a verbal attack. She saw the glint in his eyes, signifying he had found what he was looking for. “Weasley, what are  _ those?” _

He was pointing at a sleeve hanging underneath Ron’s owl’s cage. The lace around the cuff was moldy, and Vega restrained herself from scrunching up her nose in distaste. Ron tried to stuff the robes towards the wall to put them out of sight, but Draco lunged forward and caught the sleeve. He yanked it off the hanger and held it up in front of him. “You weren’t actually thinking about  _ wearing _ these, were you, Weasley? I’m sure they were much more fashionable two hundred years ago, and they certainly look like they’ve been in a closet that long.” Draco sneered.

“Piss off, Malfoy!” Ron snatched the dress robes out of Draco’s hand, turning almost as red as his hair. Draco let out a bark of laughter before turning to Harry.

“So, are you going to enter, Potter? You’ve always got to be a show off, so I would expect nothing less.” Draco taunted.

“What’re you on about, Malfoy?” Hermione asked, looking over the book she had been reading,  _ The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 4. _ Vega couldn’t help the internal smirk she had at the fact that both Hermione and Draco were already reading ahead, and the same book too. Draco looked almost euphoric at her question.

“You’re saying that you don’t  _ know? _ You haven’t  _ heard?”  _ He paused. “Weasley, you’ve got two immediate family members working at the Ministry, and you know  _ nothing  _ of what’s happening this year?  _ My _ father told Vega and me about it ages ago. Cornelius Fudge, himself, let my father in on it. Then again,  _ our _ father’s always made a point to only associate with a higher caliber of wizard.”

Hermione snorted behind her book, and didn’t even look up at Draco this time. “You already know we have very different definitions of what makes a ‘higher caliber of wizard,’ Malfoy. Just get on with it already.”

“Quite right, Granger.” Draco smirked. He turned to Vega. “Are you coming?”

Vega rolled her eyes and stood, moving towards the compartment door. She turned back to look at the trio. 

“I’ll see you lot later, yeah?” Vega asked, suddenly a little nervous about their reaction.

Ron narrowed his eyes. “We’ll see about that, won’t we?” He said in a tight voice.

Hermione clicked her tongue. “Hush, Ron.” She smiled tentatively at Vega. “Of course. I may even see you in Arithmancy and Ancient Runes, if they combined the upper levels at all.”

Harry gave Vega a small smile and a nod, hoping to be discreet with Draco in such close quarters. He wasn’t quite so lucky though.

“Potter, stop making eyes at my sister, or we’re going to have real problems.” He scowled and pulled Vega by her arm out of the compartment. She barely was able to slide the door closed as he continued to tug her the rest of the way to his own, now empty, compartment.

“Draco, you do realize that I have been given a task by the Dark Lord, yes? I was under the assumption that you knew, seeing as only hours ago I explained it multiple times.” Vega crossed her arms over her chest and raised a single eyebrow at him. Her lips were pressed into a tight line.

Draco sat in the same place he had been when she left. “Of course, darling sister.” He drawled. “Why ever would you think I didn’t?” 

“Because you waltzed into their compartment and reminded them exactly who I am related to, that person being  _ you. _ I cannot gain their trust if you plan to show up and undo all of the progress I manage to make. Ronald Weasley is already absolutely certain I’ll be sorted into Slytherin, which makes the other two skeptical as well. Then you come in and antagonize the boy for having old dress robes. Regardless of how you feel about them, I have a task to complete. Do you know the possibilities if I fail, Draco?”

Draco looked contemplative. Of course he knew what could happen. Death could happen, to any of his family members. And that would be merciful compared to the torture that could be dealt upon them. He was lucky thus far not to have seen any of this, but he would be an idiot if he didn’t know at least a little about the kinds of things that happened when the Dark Lord’s followers disobeyed during the first war. He sighed.

“Fine. I will try to stay out of the way. But there is nothing to be done if they instigate anything themselves. And if I run into them by chance, it would seem odd if I didn’t try to rile the Weasel up, at the very least. You’ll just have to deal with those things.” He responded.

Vega nodded. “Well, that’s better than I expected honestly.” She sat down across from him. A sudden thought came to her, and she couldn’t help but contemplate it for a few moments before speaking up. “Draco? When I’m placed in Gryffindor, are you going to treat me like you treat the rest of them?”

He cocked his head to the side in thought. “Of course not. Even if you were to start following Potter around with doe eyes, which by the way, please do not. I’d never keep another meal down again. I wouldn’t do that to you. Our own public interactions will have to be limited though as well. I suspect most Slytherins, once they are over the shock of your existence, will declare you a blood traitor. Maybe not quite so publicly announcing it themselves, but they’ll be subtle about it. Probably writing to their parents.” He paused, thinking. “We’ll have to find some way to meet. Perhaps a table at the back of the library.”

Vega nodded, but didn’t say anything. Maybe this was going to be more difficult than she thought.

* * *

**1 September 1994, _The Great Hall_**

Despite having read about the Great Hall in  _ Hogwarts: A History, _ Vega was not prepared for what she walked into. The extremely high enchanted ceiling, depicting a starry sky, seemed endless. She’d certainly seen floating candles before, but something about them being scattered around the vast room seemed especially fantastical. The four house tables all stretching towards the faculty table made the room seem incredibly long.

The only downside she could see of the experience so far was that she wasn’t able to share her wonder with anyone. She and Draco had decided it would be best if she didn’t appear to have any alliances before being sorted, even with her own brother. Luckily, she hadn’t been required to join the first years in riding in boats across the lake. While it did seem like its own nice experience, she certainly wasn’t going to be having it with a bunch of eleven year olds. So when she crowded into the entrance hall with the other students making their way to the Great Hall, she waited off to the side for Professor McGonagall and the first years to appear. McGonagall walked up to her briskly upon seeing her towering over the tittering first years.

“You must be Vega Malfoy, yes?” Professor McGonagall asked, peering over her glasses at Vega.

“Yes, ma’am.” Vega responded, swallowing a bit of nervousness.

“I am sorry to say, you’ll be the last to be sorted this evening. I’d stay towards the back of the group after we enter. I believe the Headmaster feels it necessary that he gives a bit of explanation. However, he has asked me to assure you that he only does not intend to reveal any details about your circumstances.” Professor McGonagall informed her, adjusting her glasses and looking away, down at the parchment in her hands.

Vega nodded. “I would expect nothing less, ma’am.” She hadn’t intended it to come across sharply, but she must not have dropped it entirely from her voice because McGonagall’s head snapped up towards her.

“Miss Malfoy, you won’t be causing any trouble here, will you?” She raised an eyebrow at Vega.

“Hopefully not anymore than the average student,” Vega paused, wondering if she should stop there or take a chance. She pressed on, “although I expect Harry Potter’s attendance has significantly increased that average in only three years.” She laughed a little, showing she meant it in a light-hearted way.

McGonagall’s lips curved up a bit, and Vega swore she heard a tiny snort. “Too true, Miss Malfoy. I look forward to seeing you in Transfiguration.” She said, turning back to address the entire group.

Vega let out a breath she hadn’t known she was holding. Well, that worked out better than she thought. With the ceremony now so close she could almost taste it, she wondered how her actions just now could be judged. Was that Gryffindor bravery for speaking to a professor as such, or was it Slytherin cunning for manipulating the encounter, even just a little bit? Merlin, she hoped she wouldn’t get sorted into the wrong House.

She followed Professor McGonagall and the first years into the Great Hall. She could hear the raucousness of the returning students as they awaited the ceremony, and their dinner. But she knew exactly when they noticed her trailing at the end of the group, because a curious hush fell over them all. McGonagall turned around at the front of the group when they reached the end of the hall.

Unrolling her scroll, she spoke to the new students, “Once I call your name, you will come sit on the stool. I’ll place the hat on your head, and it will decide what House suits you best. You’ll then move to the appropriate table.” She paused. “Ackerley, Stewart!”

The aforementioned boy moved forward through the crowd, having been close to the center of it. Vega could tell he was shaking, and wondered for a moment if he would make it. McGonagall pressed the hat down onto the boy’s head once he was firmly on the stool. The Sorting Hat only took a second to decide where he belonged.

“RAVENCLAW!” the hat bellowed out.

The Ravenclaw table erupted with applause, and the rest of the Houses gave a much more subdued appreciation as the boy moved to his table. It didn’t take Vega long to become bored with the ceremony. She knew none of these students, and had no genuine feeling towards which House should be getting more students than the others. She took this time to look up at the faculty members. Dumbledore was watching the ceremony with a smile and a twinkle in his eye. How was that possible? He’d seen  _ how  _ many sorting ceremonies in his career? How could he possibly still hold any interest in them?

She didn’t recognize many of the other staff members. Hagrid was a bit obvious, being the only half-giant staff member. His hair and beard were both so bushy, Vega wasn’t sure where one ended and the other began. He wasn’t watching the ceremony, but rather was looking towards the Gryffindor table. Vega guessed he was probably having some sort of silent conversation with some of the students. 

The only other person at the table she recognized was Severus Snape. He had his hand under his chin, and his vast black eyes seemed to be boring into her, waiting for her to make eye contact. She hadn’t spoken with him in a long while, although he had occasionally tutored her in potions during the summer holidays. He was both her and Draco’s godfather, making him the only member of the faculty who had known of her existence from birth. Upon making eye contact, he gave a small, sharp nod. Coming from him, that was practically an endearment.

Finally, the last first year was sorted: “Whitby, Kevin!” “HUFFLEPUFF!” And she was the last one there. The applause seemed to go on forever, and then the students remembered the curious older student that still stood waiting to be sorted, and the clapping quieted disjointedly. Dumbledore stood up and moved to his podium, while McGonagall rolled up her scroll of names.

“As some of you may have noticed, we have one last student this year who has yet to be sorted into her proper House. This student will be joining the fifth year students in their course of study, as she has been homeschooled until today.” He paused, looking at her with his twinkling eyes. “Vega Malfoy, if you please.” He gestured to the stool.

As she walked up to the stool, she heard a quiet sea of murmuring all around the room after hearing her name. _ A Malfoy? Another one? Older than Draco? How is this possible? How did no one know? Will she be just like him? Malfoy’s have never been sorted anywhere, but Slytherin for centuries. _ Vega clenched her teeth as she turned around and sat on the stool, and Professor McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on her head. It seemed as though as soon as the hat came in contact with her, she could hear its voice inside her head.

_ Another Malfoy? Hmm, I usually only see one once a score,  _ the hat whispered in her head.

_ I guess you can’t say that anymore, huh? _ Vega snarked back.

She thought she could feel the hat vibrate with laughter.  _ Yes, I suppose you’re right. Now, where should we put you? Where do you want to go, girl? _

Vega knew it wasn’t a matter of where she  _ wanted _ to go, but rather where she  _ needed _ to go.

_ Gryffindor, eh? But not because you feel you possess courage and bravery. You’ve got a task to fulfill. _

Vega felt her eyes narrow.

_ No worries, girl. It’s not my business to get into such affairs. Not yet, anyways. As it were, Gryffindor isn’t your only option. You could make it in Ravenclaw, and succeed in your task. Or, of course, you have your family tradition of Slytherin. _

His words made Vega’s resolve shudder a bit.  _ Succeed? Would I still fulfill my requirements should I go to Slytherin? _

_ It would be a much bloodier route to go, in the end, but yes, you would. Barely. _

_ And Gryffindor? _ She asked.

_ There will be success, yes, _ the hat said cryptically.

_ Don’t think I didn’t notice how you worded that. _

The hat chuckled in her mind.  _ In Ravenclaw or Slytherin, you would succeed in the task placed before you and your family, I have no doubts. Gryffindor, however, you have multiple paths, and I could not say for certain which one will take hold at this time. Regardless, I can assure you that you would have success by being a lion. _

_ Then I suppose you know where I should go. _

She could swear she felt the hat smile.  _ Yes, I believe I do. _

“GRYFFINDOR!” the hat shouted out to the entire hall.

McGonagall removed the hat from her head, and she moved towards the table to her left. There seemed to be electricity and tension in the air, and the silence was deafening. She was keeping her head down, when there seemed to be a roaring coming from in front of her. Vega whipped her head up, and realized that the Gryffindor students were cheering for her, seemingly louder than they had all night. She couldn’t help but notice that a few of them were even taunting the Slytherin students. Although she doubted that they wouldn’t have found another reason to taunt their rival house anyways had she been sorted somewhere else. 

She saw Harry Potter waving at her, and he pointed across the table from him when he saw he had her attention. Moving down the table, she sat next to Hermione. Hermione beamed at her, and Vega suspected the girl was quite happy to have another person who valued learning nearly as much as she did around. Harry Potter’s cheeks were tinged pink, and she noticed his smile seemed to be one of relief. Ron Weasley looked at her with an expression of curious surprise, but was clapping nonetheless.

With the sorting over and the applause finally died down, Dumbledore stood and spoke to the sea of students. “Now that that is taken care of, the most important thing I can say to you all is:  _ Tuck in.” _

Vega gasped as the empty platters in the center of the tables all filled with various foods. Looking at the trio, she grinned. How could she have missed out on this for four years?


End file.
